Web Services 1
Web Services 1
Web Services 1
Eric Lease Morgan University Libraries of Notre Dame June 24, 2005
Definition
Web Services is a computing technique for systematically disseminating XML content, usually over a network. In its simplest form, one computer sends another computer a request for information in the shape of an HTTP request or an XML stream.
Opportunities
Easy to create standards-compliant services Does not favor any particular computer language or operating system Output can be transformed for a wide variety of uses It makes a lot of sense for libraries to exploit the Web Service technique
SRW/U
SRW/U are designed to provide a consistent and standard way to query Internet-accessible indexes as well as define how search results should be returned. Here is the same query applied against an SRU interface:
http://example.org/?operation=searchRetrieve& query=dogs+and+cats&version=1.1
SRW/U, again
<searchRetrieveResponse> <version>1.1</version> <numberOfRecords>1</numberOfRecords> <records> <record> <recordSchema>info:srw/schema/1/dc-v1.1</recordSchema> <recordPacking>xml</recordPacking> <recordData> <dc> <title>My Life as a Dog</title> <identifier>http://example.org/my.html</identifier> </dc> </recordData> </record> </records> </searchRetrieveResponse>
OAI-PMH
Where SRW/U provide searching mechanisms, OAI-PMH provides browsing services. OAIPMH is a REST-ful Web Service. It can use either the GET or the POST methods for sending requests.
http://infomotions.com/gallery/oai/index.pl?ver b=ListIdentifiers&metadataPrefix=oai_dc
OAI-PMH, again
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?> <OAI-PMH xmlns="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/ http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/OAI-PMH.xsd"> <responseDate>2005-06-21T19:21:48Z</responseDate> <request verb="ListIdentifiers" metadataPrefix="oai_dc">http://www.infomotions.com/gallery/oai/index.pl</request> <ListIdentifiers> <header> <identifier>oai:images:DSCN0001_3-173</identifier> <datestamp>2004-12-25T21:56:02Z</datestamp> <setSpec>heart-of-texas</setSpec> </header> <header> <identifier>oai:images:DSCN0288-1</identifier> <datestamp>2004-12-25T21:56:02Z</datestamp> <setSpec>heart-of-texas</setSpec> </header> <header> <identifier>oai:images:DSCN0290-3</identifier> <datestamp>2004-12-25T21:56:02Z</datestamp> <setSpec>heart-of-texas</setSpec> </header> </ListIdentifiers> </OAI-PMH>
WordNet
WordNet is a thesaurus designed by the Cognitive Science Department of Princeton University. By querying the WordNet database you can get sets of additional, related words, phrases, and definitions. This interface has been modified into a REST-ful Web Service. By exploiting WordNet-like Web Services in our many index interfaces, libraries could seamlessly enhance queries and search results making the interfaces smarter.
Summary
Web Services provide the means for you to make your content available in the user's space, as opposed to the other way around. It allows you to build your own interfaces to content. The ability make this happen comes at a cost -- the understanding and implementation of an additional skill set.
Summary
Finally, when requesting Web Service functionality from integrated library system vendors, insist on the implementation of standard Web Services such as SRW/U and OAI. Not vendor-enhanced standards. Also, insist on thorough documentation. Thorough documentation will describe how to request the XML output as well as provide DTDs and/or XML schema for validating it.